


Day 3: Jealousy; The Miss Potts Protocol

by AlexaNDYE



Series: Pepperony Week 2018 (8/5 - 8/11) [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Jealousy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-07
Updated: 2018-08-07
Packaged: 2019-06-23 09:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15603039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexaNDYE/pseuds/AlexaNDYE
Summary: Pepperony Week 2018Day 3: JealousyTony created the 'MP Protocol' as a safety precaution for Pepper in case anything were to happen to her. It was supposed to be for situations that could potentially be life threatening, but he got caught using it for other circumstances.





	Day 3: Jealousy; The Miss Potts Protocol

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to think this is what started their intro in Avengers Infinity War.
> 
> This is pre-Infinity War, by the way.

Rhodey was over at Tony’s workshop to pitch a few new ideas for some upgrades. Rhodey kept seeing some cool new gadgets on Tony’s newest suits, so he got a little upset and pestered Tony for something new on his suit.

 

Tony looked at Rhodey flatly. “A laser beam.”

 

“Yeah,” Rhodey nodded happily. He gestured to his forehead. “Right here.”

 

“Uh…”

 

“They think they have me head-to-head?” He gave a short laugh. “Think again!” He made a ‘pew’ sound, and mimicked the laser beam with his finger coming out of his forehead.

 

Tony shook his head. “That might be the lamest idea you’ve had yet.”

 

Rhodey pressed his lips together. “What happened to ‘there are no stupid ideas, only progress’?”

 

Tony smirked. “It’s lame. C’mon, tell me another, so I can wash that one out of my head.”

 

“You’re just going to steal it for yourself, aren’t you?”

 

“Am not.”

 

Rhodey narrowed his eyes at his best friend. “You’re not fooling me. I know my ideas are awesome.” Tony began to laugh. “Out of seventeen ideas, you shot down sixteen.”

 

“That’s because sixteen of them were terrible—”

 

“They’re not terrible. They’re clearly defensive mechanisms required for aerial combat.”

 

“How is a tiny capsule that unleashes tiny mechanical spiders a defensive mechanism?” Tony raised an eyebrow.

 

“They neutralize the opponent.”

 

“And what if they’re not afraid of spiders?”

 

Rhodey furrowed his eyebrows. “Who the hell isn’t afraid of spiders?” He began to shiver. “Man, just thinking about them makes my skin crawl.”

 

Tony tried not to laugh. He did feel bad for leaving Rhodey out of all the fun when he built his suits. The first few times were just minor adjustments here and there; nothing too powerful, and then he came across nanites, and his universe opened. He had more ideas than he could count, and all of them were far advanced than anyone could ever think of, let alone be possible.

 

A suit made of nanites that was portable enough to be taken anywhere, yet discreet, and with an unlimited amount of possibilities.

 

Tony glanced down at Rhodey’s bionic legs, and thought that his best friend deserved a lot more than just upgrades to his existing suit, but Rhodey insisted on just upgrades.

 

“Excuse me, Mr. Stark.” FRIDAY’s voice suddenly echoed throughout the workshop.

 

“What’s up, FRIDAY?” Tony asked.

 

“The MP Protocol is in effect.”

 

“What?” Rhodey raised an eyebrow. “The hell is the ‘MP Protocol’?”

 

Tony furrowed his eyebrows. “Bring up a visual, please.”

 

A thin screen holographed onto the space in front of them and showed a pair walking in the park. One of them was Pepper, whom was in her navy blue jogging outfit, and the other was a man in a dryfit white shirt and a pair of blue basketball shorts. He looked to be about a couple inches taller than Pepper; he was pale, he had short light brown hair that was parted to the side, and a light brown beard that was obviously trimmed to perfection. His build was perfectly symmetrical; his upper body was toned, and his biceps weren’t huge, but they were a moderate size. He almost looked like a model.

 

She was laughing at something he was saying, and he laughed as well. It looked like they were having a nice conversation – almost too nice.

 

Rhodey’s eyes widened. “What the hell, Tony?”

 

Tony pressed his lips together in annoyance, more so at the person Pepper was with. “It’s just in case she gets into trouble.” He tapped onto the holograph and let FRIDAY search for an identification on the man.

 

“You mean this is just in case she happens to meet someone you don’t recognize,” Rhodey replied and shook his head. “You know, when Pepper finds out about this, she’s going to kill you.”

 

“This is a safety precaution.”

 

“This is you being overly protective.”

 

“I’m worried about her safety.”

 

“You’re worried she’ll meet someone that’s better than you.”

 

Tony turned away from him and frowned at the possibility. He began to whisper to himself with slight uncertainty, “I highly doubt that’ll happen…”

 

Rhodey sighed and shook his head. He knew Tony was aware of the boundaries that came with a relationship, but his ‘MP Protocol’ was a double edged sword. While it could also be a safety precaution, it was also an opportunity for him to get in some serious trouble. He should’ve told Tony to shut it off and have Friday let him know if Pepper gets into any actual trouble, but he let everything play out. He enjoyed having Tony learn the hard way.

 

When the facial recognition wasn’t working fast enough for Tony’s impatience, he asked FRIDAY to call Pepper for him. He was hoping that Pepper would tell the guy that she had to take a call and that the guy would leave her alone, but she didn’t do any of that.

 

She felt her phone vibrate, she pulled it out of her pocket, she looked at her phone, and then she ignored the call and put her phone back into her pocket. She looked a little concerned, but she ultimately chose to talk to the man in front of her than her own fiancé.

 

Rhodey’s mouth opened as he watched her ignore her phone. He cautiously looked over at Tony, who was still unsure of what just happened.

 

Rhodey tried not to laugh. “Dude, she just ignored you.”

 

Tony looked annoyed and slightly angry. “Yes, I can see that,” he snapped at Rhodey. “Any progress on the facial recognition, FRIDAY?”

 

“The feed is too far to get a clear facial recognition, Sir. It would take at least another two hours to get an exact match,” FRIDAY replied.

 

“Damn it,” he cursed under his breath. “Why is the feed too far? Can’t we get closer?”

 

“This is a security camera, not a drone,” FRIDAY replied with a subtle sigh.

 

“We’re upgrading to drones next time. Mark it on my ‘to do’ list.”

 

FRIDAY paused. Rhodey could’ve sworn he heard his AI sigh again. “Yes, sir.”

 

“You are not using drones to spy on her, Tony.”

 

“Why not?”

 

“Because, one, it’s unethical, and two, it’s like you’re saying you don’t trust her. Do you trust her?”

 

Tony stared at the feed of her and the man talking; he first stared at the man, and then he stared at Pepper. “I do.”

 

“Then turn off the camera and wait for her to come home.”

 

“What’s Pepper’s ETA, FRIDAY?” he asked.

 

“She is about a twenty minute jog away from home, Sir.”

 

Rhodey waved the holograph away and moved Tony towards his workbench. “When she gets home, you can ask her how her jog was, and maybe she’ll tell you about the guy.” Tony crossed his arms across his chest and mumbled a few incoherent words. He was upset and annoyed that some other man, that wasn’t him, was making Pepper laugh.

 

When FRIDAY announced Pepper’s arrival, Tony nearly sprinted up the stairs to greet her. Rhodey, of course, took his time, because he knew exactly what was going to happen next. He could read Tony like an open book; his impatience and lack of experience told him enough.

 

Pepper was cooling down from her jog and wiping her face with a towel.

 

“Hi, Honey,” Tony greeted her.

 

Pepper looked over Tony and saw Rhodey come up from the stairs as well. “Hi,” she smiled. “Hi, James.”

 

“Hey,” he greeted her. He could tell Tony was about to ask who that man was that Pepper was talking to, so he elbowed Tony in the ribs to correct his approach.

 

“How was the jog?” he asked Pepper before subtly glaring at Rhodey.

 

“The jog was good,” she replied. “You here to pester Tony about some suit upgrades, James?”

 

He laughed. “You know me so well.”

 

“You didn’t answer me,” Tony frowned.

 

Pepper stopped wiping herself down with the towel and slowly turned to Tony. She narrowed her eyes at him. Rhodey could tell what she was thinking; he took a step back from the couple, hoping he wouldn’t get in the way.

 

“Yes, I did,” she replied.

 

“Uh – I mean – how was the jog _specifically_?”

 

She furrowed her eyebrows. “Specifically?”

 

“Yeah, I mean, did you see any trees, plants, or animals…?” Tony asked.

 

“I mean… there were quite a few trees, and I did see a few dogs.”

 

“…and did you meet anyone—”

 

“I knew it!” Pepper yelled at Tony. “That’s why you called me earlier.” She shook her head at him and pressed her lips together. She was trying not to instantly burst into anger.

 

Tony held his hands up in defense. “I was worried about you.”

 

“No, you were spying on me.”

 

“What if he kidnapped you?”

 

“Then I would’ve kicked his ass.” She scoffed. “Do you really think he’d kidnap me in broad daylight where everyone was?”

 

Tony had to think about it for a few seconds. “You never know…”

 

“I can’t believe you, Tony!” she yelled again. “This is the third time you’ve done this.”

 

“You’re jogging out in the open, Pep. Someone could very easily threaten your life.” He tried to make a point, and while it was a good point, it didn’t help his current case.

 

“Wow,” Rhodey murmured. “Third time, Tony?” He shook his head at him. “Terrible. Absolutely terrible.” He gathered his jacket that was draped over the couch and made his way towards the front door. “As much fun as it is seeing you get yelled at, Tony, I’ve got to get going. Let me know how those upgrades are going, yeah?” He patted Tony on the shoulder, and then turned to Pepper. “And please don’t call off the wedding. I wrote the greatest best man speech last night, and I have so many good and embarrassing stories about him.”

 

Pepper forced herself to smile. “I’ll try not to. Have a good night, James.”

 

Rhodey waved at the couple before he closed the door.

 

Once the door closed, she made her way towards the master bedroom and Tony trailed behind her.

 

“So, that’s it?” Tony asked. “You’re just going to yell at me and give me the silent treatment?”

 

“Why do you need to know where I am at all times, Tony, and why does it matter who I talk to?” she asked calmly.

 

He sighed and frowned. “I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

 

“And I believe you,” she replied and then walked up to him. “But, when you saw the guy I was talking to…?”

 

He shrugged. “I… I don’t know.”

 

“You got jealous,” she realized. “Like you were the last two times this happened.”

 

“I’m not jealous.” He paused. “I’m just… overly protective.”

 

“Jealousy, Tony,” she said firmly.

 

“Was he hitting on you?” he asked sternly and with curiosity.

 

Pepper lightly laughed. “No, he wasn’t.”

 

“Who was he?”

 

“He’s an old friend from High School. We haven’t seen each other in ages.” She smirked. “Would you also like to know his address and social security number?” She almost laughed when she saw his eyes widen in shock. “I’m kidding.”

 

She wrapped her arms around his neck while he rested his hands on her waist. She sternly gazed into his soft brown eyes and made sure that he knew he was in trouble. “I’m serious, Tony. The next time you do this, it’s not going to end well.”

 

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I’m not… I mean, I am… I’m just not…”

 

“You’re not used to it?” she asked.

 

He tried to look away. “I’m not used to being…”

 

“Jealous?” She asked, and he nodded. “Do you trust me?”

 

“Of course I do.”

 

“Then trust me.”

 

 “I just don’t trust those other guys.”

 

Pepper tried not to laugh. “You do realize that Nat trained me for a couple months. I wouldn’t be too worried.”

 

Almost like a lightbulb that light up above his head, his ears perked up when he thought of an idea. “You know what? Why don’t I go with you?”

 

“Huh?” She raised an eyebrow at him.

 

“I’ll go jogging with you.”

 

She smirked. “Really?”

 

“Yeah,” he nodded. “It’ll be like one of those couples thing we do together.”

 

“You going to be able to keep up?”

 

Tony looked offended. “Whoa, who says I can’t keep up?”

 

Pepper laughed. “I’ll try to slow down for you.”


End file.
